Job 20
1 Tsophar de Naama prit la parole et dit:
Then Zophar the Naamathite replied:
2 Mes pensées me forcent à répondre, Et mon agitation ne peut se contenir.
“So my anxious thoughts compel me to answer, because of the turmoil within me.
3 J’ai entendu des reproches qui m’outragent; Le souffle de mon intelligence donnera la réplique.
I have heard a rebuke that insults me, and my understanding prompts a reply.
4 Ne sais-tu pas que, de tout temps, Depuis que l’homme a été placé sur la terre,
Do you not know that from antiquity, since man was placed on the earth,
5 Le triomphe des méchants a été court, Et la joie de l’impie momentanée?
the triumph of the wicked has been brief and the joy of the godless momentary?
6 Quand il s’élèverait jusqu’aux cieux, Et que sa tête toucherait aux nues,
Though his arrogance reaches the heavens, and his head touches the clouds,
7 Il périra pour toujours comme son ordure, Et ceux qui le voyaient diront: Où est-il?
he will perish forever, like his own dung; those who had seen him will ask, ‘Where is he?’
8 Il s’envolera comme un songe, et on ne le trouvera plus; Il disparaîtra comme une vision nocturne;
He will fly away like a dream, never to be found; he will be chased away like a vision in the night.
9 L’œil qui le regardait ne le regardera plus, Le lieu qu’il habitait ne l’apercevra plus.
The eye that saw him will see him no more, and his place will no longer behold him.
10 Ses fils seront assaillis par les pauvres, Et ses mains restitueront ce qu’il a pris par violence.
His sons will seek the favor of the poor, for his own hands must return his wealth.
11 La vigueur de la jeunesse, qui remplissait ses membres, Aura sa couche avec lui dans la poussière.
The youthful vigor that fills his bones will lie down with him in the dust.
12 Le mal était doux à sa bouche, Il le cachait sous sa langue,
Though evil is sweet in his mouth and he conceals it under his tongue,
13 Il le savourait sans l’abandonner, Il le retenait au milieu de son palais;
though he cannot bear to let it go and keeps it in his mouth,
14 Mais sa nourriture se transformera dans ses entrailles, Elle deviendra dans son corps un venin d’aspic.
yet in his stomach his food sours into the venom of cobras within him.
15 Il a englouti des richesses, il les vomira; Dieu les chassera de son ventre.
He swallows wealth but vomits it out; God will force it from his stomach.
16 Il a sucé du venin d’aspic, La langue de la vipère le tuera.
He will suck the poison of cobras; the fangs of a viper will kill him.
17 Il ne reposera plus ses regards sur les ruisseaux, Sur les torrents, sur les fleuves de miel et de lait.
He will not enjoy the streams, the rivers flowing with honey and cream.
18 Il rendra ce qu’il a gagné, et n’en profitera plus; Il restituera tout ce qu’il a pris, et n’en jouira plus.
He must return the fruit of his labor without consuming it; he cannot enjoy the profits of his trading.
19 Car il a opprimé, délaissé les pauvres, Il a ruiné des maisons et ne les a pas rétablies.
For he has oppressed and forsaken the poor; he has seized houses he did not build.
20 Son avidité n’a point connu de bornes; Mais il ne sauvera pas ce qu’il avait de plus cher.
Because his appetite is never satisfied, he cannot escape with his treasure.
21 Rien n’échappait à sa voracité; Mais son bien-être ne durera pas.
Nothing is left for him to consume; thus his prosperity will not endure.
22 Au milieu de l’abondance il sera dans la détresse; La main de tous les misérables se lèvera sur lui.
In the midst of his plenty, he will be distressed; the full force of misery will come upon him.
23 Et voici, pour lui remplir le ventre, Dieu enverra sur lui le feu de sa colère, Et le rassasiera par une pluie de traits.
When he has filled his stomach, God will vent His fury upon him, raining it down on him as he eats.
24 S’il échappe aux armes de fer, L’arc d’airain le transpercera.
Though he flees from an iron weapon, a bronze-tipped arrow will pierce him.
25 Il arrache de son corps le trait, Qui étincelle au sortir de ses entrailles, Et il est en proie aux terreurs de la mort.
It is drawn out of his back, the gleaming point from his liver. Terrors come over him.
26 Toutes les calamités sont réservées à ses trésors; Il sera consumé par un feu que n’allumera point l’homme, Et ce qui restera dans sa tente en deviendra la pâture.
Total darkness is reserved for his treasures. A fire unfanned will consume him and devour what is left in his tent.
27 Les cieux dévoileront son iniquité, Et la terre s’élèvera contre lui.
The heavens will expose his iniquity, and the earth will rise up against him.
28 Les revenus de sa maison seront emportés, Ils disparaîtront au jour de la colère de Dieu.
The possessions of his house will be removed, flowing away on the day of God’s wrath.
29 Telle est la part que Dieu réserve au méchant, Tel est l’héritage que Dieu lui destine.
This is the wicked man’s portion from God, the inheritance God has appointed him.”
